Chapter 583 To keep more people alive

Gamelin dropped the telegram and walked to Charles, saying stiffly: "Whatever you want to do, General, you should stop!"

Charles moved the newspaper away and glanced at Gamelin coldly: "You seem to have forgotten who you are, General, and who you are talking to."

Gamelin was stunned, and then he realized that he was used to taking command and forgot that Charles was the commander of the army group.

But Gamelin was still unwilling to be outdone.

The command was in his hands. He was much older than Charles and was also the smartest general in France. He had the final say here.

"You know what I'm talking about, General." Gamelin naturally put himself on the commanding heights, and he said excitedly: "Our opponents are the Germans, not our own people. What you did is extremely irresponsible, and it is a nightmare for the army!"

Charles seemed to be interrupted from reading the newspaper. He shook the newspaper, folded it twice and threw it on the desk:

"First of all, I don't know what you are talking about."

"Secondly, our opponents are the Germans, and I completely agree with this."

"But if we talk about 'nightmare', I think nothing can compare to the Somme, right? What do you think, General?"

Gamelin was speechless.

Charles was telling him: The troops will suffer the tragedy of the Somme again and again in the hands of you idiots, and Charles is the one who wins at the lowest cost.

Therefore, from the perspective of casualties, victory and even national interests, Gamelin's practice of undermining Charles' power is what he calls "irresponsible" and "nightmare".

Charles smiled contemptuously, these bastards, they are also worthy of saying "irresponsible".

Seeing that he couldn't convince Charles, Gamolin could only say bitterly: "I won't let you succeed."

Charles spread his hands indifferently, saying that he wanted to see if Gamolin had any way to break the situation.

As a result, Gamolin walked back to his desk and issued an order before he sat down: "Order the troops to stop attacking!"

After saying that, Gamolin glanced at Charles with a little pride.

If these officers were killed by the soldiers during the attack, you would have no choice but to attack!

Charles kept smiling, with a hint of teasing on the corners of his mouth.

This idiot actually thought that this would solve the problem.

About half an hour later, this secret fight had a result.

The staff officer on the phone reported loudly to Gamelin: "General, the Germans launched an attack on our defense line. They attacked the headquarters of our 72nd Infantry Division. The division commander, General Donadieu, was seriously injured, and two other regimental commanders and seven staff officers died."

Gamelin's face turned pale instantly. He realized that the French army's non-attack did not mean that the German army would not attack.

Once the German army launched an attack, the soldiers who implemented the "hidden rules" would be able to wipe out the officers hiding in the headquarters.

Of course, in the name of the "Storm Commando", the Germans gave them a perfect excuse!

Gamelin looked at Charles in anger, but he could do nothing.

Charles just smiled, as if he was laughing at Gamelin's naivety and impracticality.

Once the army's "unwritten rules" start, it is difficult to stop.

Because it is not just Christine's First Special Artillery Division, the entire 6th Army will follow suit after hearing the news, and will not stop until the goal is achieved.

They just want to survive and win, and only Charles can do this.

But the officers who were inserted in stood between them and Charles, and wanted to lead the soldiers to death.

If the soldiers want to survive, they have to remove these "stumbling blocks" in the middle!

...

In the 16th district of Paris, Clemenceau, who is 74 years old, is spending Christmas Eve with his family in his villa.

This is a big family. More than 20 people gathered at the rectangular dining table, men and women, young and old, they laughed and talked under the background of the Christmas tree lights, the table was full of exquisite food, and the children chased and played in the intervals.

Clemenceau sat in the main seat. He drank a few glasses of wine and his face was flushed. His slightly drunk eyes looked at everything with satisfaction.

Nothing can make people prouder than ensuring family reunion during wartime.

And he firmly believes that no matter how many years this war lasts, he has the ability to do this.

At this time, the butler brought a silver tray and placed it in front of Clemenceau skillfully. Clemenceau was stunned. It was a telegram from Belgium.

It said: "A large number of officers of the 6th Army died in battle."

The butler leaned forward and whispered: "Master, Brigadier General Xavier died not long ago in Gembloux!"

Clemenceau's face changed again and again, and he glanced at his brother sitting on the right. Xavier was his youngest son.

While Clemenceau was still thinking about what to say, another servant came up hurriedly: "Master, Prime Minister Briand asked you to go to the city hall!"

The error-free version is reading! 6=9+Shu_bar first published this novel.

...

Briand has been staying in the city hall. Without family concerns, it doesn't matter where he spends Christmas Eve. He plans to stay here and pay attention to the "Christmas Offensive" tonight.

(Note: Briand was an ascetic and never married)

At around 8 o'clock in the evening, Briand finished his dinner and stood by the window with a glass of red wine, enjoying the night view of Paris and marveling at the greatness of this "City of Light".

When the bells of Notre Dame came from afar, Briand planned to summarize his work.

After recalling for a while, he felt that the most proud thing should be the successful removal of Charles from the 6th Army not long ago.

"This is obviously a good thing." Briand looked into the void and muttered to himself: "Otherwise, France will groan under the control of the dictator again. I must guarantee her freedom!"

At this time, the secretary came in with a hurried step: "Mr. Prime Minister, General Gamelin called and a large number of officers died in battle."

Briand turned his head suddenly as if he was pricked by a needle. He sensitively realized that this matter was not as simple as "sacrificing in battle".

He took the telegram and read it for a while, then ordered: "Call Clemenceau."

"Yes, sir."

Before Clemenceau arrived, Briand asked Gamelin through a telegram:

"Is this matter related to Charles?"

"I'm not sure, sir, he doesn't seem to have done anything, and we have no evidence."

"How could they do this?"

"In fact, this can be said to be a tradition of the army."

"Tradition?"

"Yes." Gamelin explained:

"They call it 'jungle law' or 'natural law'."

"In peacetime, they will punish soldiers who drag down the troops with lynching."

"When it comes to wartime, this lynching is more radical. But most of them are aimed at officers who will threaten the survival of the troops, with the aim of keeping more people alive."

The implication is: if officers don't give them a way to live, the government and the law can't save them, and they can only rely on themselves.